CPC technology class · B31
B31B - Making Containers Of Paper
Making containers of paper, cardboard or material worked in a manner analogous to paper. 2,038 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year grant trajectory.
- 2,038
- US patents granted
- #1/4
- in B31
- 52.0%
- B31 class share
- +17%
- 5-yr velocity
The verdict
According to USPTO PatentsView, Making Containers Of Paper ranks #368 of 670 CPC technology areas - 2,038 US patents granted since 2015, with recorded grant volume up 17% over five years.
- #368
- of 670 CPC technology areas
- 2,038
- US patents granted, 2015–2025
- Graphic Packaging…
- leading assignee (120)
- +17%
- grant velocity, last 5 yrs
How B31B's grant cadence moved
Between 2020–2024, B31B recorded 1,007 grants versus 862 in 2015–2019 (+17% equal-window velocity). Across complete years, output peaked in 2024 at 211 grants and bottomed in 2015 at 160 (+32% peak-over-trough). Lead assignee Graphic Packaging International, LLC holds 5.9% of the class ; the top three share 12.0%.
Leaderboard read
B31B concentration, lead at 5.9%
Graphic Packaging International, LLC leads this historical grant record at 5.9% of B31B - us corporation assignees hold 58% of class grants (833 of 1,440). Figures describe granted US utility patents in this CPC subclass, not current investment or legal strength.
- Leader's share
- 5.9%
- Top three share
- 12.0%
- Lead over #2
- 41
120 of 2,038 grants
of the class's recorded grants
more grants than WestRock Shared Services, LLC
Where B31B sits inside B31
Among 4 subclasses in B31 (Making Articles OF Paper, Cardboard OR Material Worked IN A Manner Analogous TO PAPER; Working Paper, Cardboard OR Material Worked IN A Manner Analogous TO Paper), B31B ranks #1 and holds 52.0% of the parent class's 3,917 recorded grants. Sibling chips below are the other subclasses in the same parent class, not the nationwide volume/lead-share peers further down.
Rising assignees active in B31B
Company-wide grant multiples (2022–2024 vs 2019–2021) among assignees with ≥5 patents in this subclass. Growth is company-wide; class patent counts are subclass-specific.
- #1 HexcelPack, LLC 10x 0 → 10 company-wide · 7 in B31B
- #2 PulPac AB 8.00x 1 → 8 company-wide · 12 in B31B
- #3 Brown LLC 6.00x 1 → 6 company-wide · 5 in B31B
- #4 GPI Systems AB 6.00x 0 → 6 company-wide · 5 in B31B
- #5 C.M.C. S.p.A. 5.00x 0 → 5 company-wide · 5 in B31B
B31B grants by year, peak 2024 (211)
US utility-patent grants per year in B31B, 2015–2025 - recent five years are up 17% versus 2015–2019.
Who leads B31B?
The 12 most active assignees in Making Containers OF Paper, Cardboard OR Material Worked IN A Manner Analogous TO Paper - wider bars mean more grants
- Graphic Packaging…
Graphic Packaging International, LLC
120 patents
- Westrock Shared…
WestRock Shared Services, LLC
79 patents
- The Glad Products 45
THE Glad Products Company
45 patents
- Packsize 45
Packsize, LLC
45 patents
- Totani 38
Totani Corporation
38 patents
- Tetra Laval Holdings… 36
Tetra Laval Holdings & Finance S.A.
36 patents
- Sonoco Development 35
Sonoco Development, Inc.
35 patents
- Pratt Retail… 32
Pratt Retail Specialties, LLC
32 patents
- Bobst Mex 26
Bobst MEX SA
26 patents
- Sig Technology 26
SIG Technology AG
26 patents
- Berry Plastics 22
Berry Plastics Corporation
22 patents
- Mitsubishi Heavy… 22
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Machinery Systems, Ltd.
22 patents
What this shows Graphic Packaging… is the most active filer in B31B, holding 120 of the 2,038 patents in this class. Concentration at the top signals how contestable this technology area is for new entrants.
View data table
| Rank | Company | Patents in B31B |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | Graphic Packaging International, LLC | 120 |
| #2 | WestRock Shared Services, LLC | 79 |
| #3 | THE Glad Products Company | 45 |
| #4 | Packsize, LLC | 45 |
| #5 | Totani Corporation | 38 |
| #6 | Tetra Laval Holdings & Finance S.A. | 36 |
| #7 | Sonoco Development, Inc. | 35 |
| #8 | Pratt Retail Specialties, LLC | 32 |
| #9 | Bobst MEX SA | 26 |
| #10 | SIG Technology AG | 26 |
| #11 | Berry Plastics Corporation | 22 |
| #12 | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Machinery Systems, Ltd. | 22 |
| #13 | CMD Corporation | 20 |
| #14 | Windmöller & Hölscher KG | 18 |
| #15 | Ishida Co., Ltd. | 14 |
| #16 | Idemitsu Unitech Co., Ltd. | 14 |
| #17 | Kabushiki Kaisha Isowa | 14 |
| #18 | Thatbox Design, LLC | 14 |
| #19 | Poly-America, L.P. | 13 |
| #20 | Pouch Pac Innovations, LLC | 13 |
Footprint here vs. claim strategy
Each dot is a leading B31B assignee, placed by how many patents it holds in this class (horizontal) against its company-wide average claims per patent (vertical) - a read on whether the class is led by broad-but-shallow filers or focused deep-claim players.
Classes near B31B's 2,038-grant footprint
Nationwide nearest neighbors for B31B (#368 of 670 by volume ; lead share 5.9%) - not the B31 parent-class siblings above.
Nearest by grant volume
Questions about B31B
Which company holds the most patents in B31B?
Which B31B assignees grew fastest recently?
How does B31B compare inside parent class B31?
What to do with this data
B31B in context - here's where to go next.
- Graphic Packaging International, LLC leads B31B with 120 grants in this class. See full portfolio
- B31B ranks #368 of 670 by grant volume among all tracked CPC technology areas. See the ranking
- Inside parent class B31, the largest sibling subclass is B31F with 1,044 grants. Explore B31F
Figures reflect USPTO PatentsView grant data through 2026-05-15; pending applications not yet granted are not counted.
Methodology - B31B figures are USPTO PatentsView granted-utility totals for this subclass (2,038 grants in the tracked window).
Every figure on PlainPatent is rendered directly from USPTO source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on USPTO source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.